


Backup Plan

by ReverseMousetrap



Category: Borderlands (Video Games)
Genre: College era, Light-hearted fluff, M/M, Pre-Canon, Pre-Relationship, gayperion, just two guys who are Very Good Friends
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-05-14
Updated: 2018-05-14
Packaged: 2019-05-07 04:08:40
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 967
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14662989
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ReverseMousetrap/pseuds/ReverseMousetrap
Summary: In their college days, Rhys asks Vaughn to promise him something very important.





	Backup Plan

**Author's Note:**

> It's taken three tries to upload this ghdfhsjhs

Rhys seemed to be incapable of using furniture like a normal person. When he wasn’t slouching bonelessly in his desk chair, he was lying on the floor with his legs up on the bed – or lately, when sitting had gotten old, he’d started draping himself over Vaughn’s shoulders with his chin on his head.

Apart from the reminder of his all-too-brief growth spurt as a teenager, it wasn’t actually that annoying. Rhys was warm and smelled pleasantly of his mom’s expensive washing powder ever since the incident with the campus laundromat had gotten them banned, and when he talked (which was constantly) his voice rumbled pleasantly against his back.

The only problem was that neither of them could be productive in that position. If Vaughn was trying to read up on taxation law, he would be interrupted by endless teasing questions about his _totally boring_ major that ended in him giving a passionate lecture about superannuation – which was great for his financially irresponsible best friend, but wouldn’t earn him any extra credit in his classes. Meanwhile, when Rhys had an assignment due, he was capable of half-hour monologues about how his professors had terrible taste in programming languages before Vaughn physically removed him and dumped him back in front of his computer.

So when Rhys came back to the dorm late one night with his face buried under his hoodie and flopped silently onto his unmade bed, Vaughn didn’t have to ask to know that something was wrong.

His typing suddenly seemed far too loud in the tiny room, and he found his hands hovering above the keyboard while he listened for a sign that would tell him what to do next. He sincerely hoped Rhys wasn’t going to cry; he’d never figured out what he was supposed to do when someone burst into tears, and he didn’t want to expose his failings as a best friend.

Mercifully, all he heard was a deep dramatic sigh. That was a cue he could follow. Saving his spreadsheet to the cloud, he spun around in his chair to look at Rhys where he was curled up facing the wall.

“Hey,” he said softly. “What’s up?”

A muffled voice answered him. “Life suuuucks.”

Vaughn hesitated before finally tiptoeing across the room to sit on the edge of the bed.

“Yeah, pretty much. Anything in particular?” he asked, patting him awkwardly on the shoulder. There was a long list of things that tended to make Rhys theatrical, from code reviews to cancelled TV shows. It was quicker to just skip the guessing phase.

“Hal broke up with me.”

“Damn. I’m sorry.” Vaughn tried to sound sincere while he searched his memory for anyone with a matching name. He had a vague recollection of an anime nerd with curly hair and big round glasses who had seemed quite nice for the five minutes they’d ever spoken – in which case, it really was a shame that they’d broken up. As selfish as it sounded, he’d always hoped Rhys would end up with someone who liked having him around too: a _love me, love my dog_ kind of thing, except with an undersized accounting major.

“I thought he was the one,” mumbled Rhys, playing with the drawstrings on his hoodie.

If Vaughn had been feeling uncharitable, he might have reminded him that he’d previously said similar things about Chell the exchange student and Gordon the hot TA. Instead he simply sighed and climbed onto the bed to lie down properly next to his friend, Rhys gratefully rolling over to snuggle into him. Even in winter clothes, Rhys was all angles and bones; Vaughn was almost grateful that the gym hadn’t broken through his last stubborn layer of padding.

Privately, he wondered what Hal would have thought of them cuddling up in bed together. It just sort of happened sometimes.

“Maybe we should just get married,” said Rhys at last.

He looked down, one eyebrow raised, sure he hadn’t heard correctly. “Hmm?”

“You and me. We’re good together, right?”

“Our friendship’s already weird enough, bro,” said Vaughn, ruffling his hair affectionately. “Marriage might be taking it a little too far.”

“We don’t have to, you know, do it,” Rhys added quickly.

“What, you don’t think I’m sexy?” It sounded more plaintive than sarcastic, much to his annoyance.

“Well…I _do_ like guys with glasses.”

They both laughed at that. Vaughn suddenly had the strangest vision of the two of them as the heads of their respective departments, coming home to their house in the suburbs with the kick-ass motorcycle in the garage, ordering takeout from somewhere fancy and sharing it on the couch…

Maybe kissing. Just to try it.

“Tell you what. If we’re both still single when we’re forty, I will totally marry you,” he said.

“Can we do thirty-five? I’m worried about my hairline,” replied Rhys, propping himself up and looking very seriously at Vaughn. “It has to look good in the photos.”

“Thirty-five, then.” He rolled his eyes, but his smile was genuine.

“Pinky promise?” His little finger was held out, his expression solemn as a judge.

“Of course.”

A small twist of his own hand, and the vow was made. Vaughn felt oddly relieved by it: now he had a backup plan in case he never figured out the social scene. He could do a lot worse. Rhys could probably do a lot better, but it _was_ his idea.

His friend was warm at his side, all angst forgotten as his brown eyes sparkled. “We should go out. Celebrate our engagement,” he said, poking Vaughn in the stomach.

“Alright, future husband. But no wingman stuff, okay? I need a break from your drama.”

“Nope. Tonight’s about you and me. _Bro._ ”

Vaughn thought he liked the sound of that.

A lot.

_Shit._


End file.
